PLACE NAME
John de Hatfield was a medieval landowner who leased 24 acres of land here in 1327. From the Norman Conquest down to the reign of Henry VIII the land had been held by Waltham Abbey, however following the dissolution of the monasteries, the king’s land grab against the church in 1540, it passed into the crown’s hands. From there it was sold to Henry Mynce for £2 14s. 8d. Mynce was also leasing The White Lion tavern in Southwark. In 1799 Hatfields villa was built just to the north of Loughton Hall. It has since served as an old peoples’ home, a school and now forms part of the University of Essex campus. This is one of several local streets that takes its name from 14thCentury taxpayers.
